Gov Docs: Be Money Smart   Tags: be money smart, debt, fdic, management, money, money smart, smart  

Suggests do's and don'ts to manage your credit card account and help maintain a high credit score.

Explains how to obtain your credit report, how credit scores are determined, how to verify reported information, and how to improve and maintain a good credit score.

A website by the Federal Reserve summarizing new credit card protections that take effect on February 22, 2010. The site includes interactive tools for users to learn more about the terms and fees of credit card offers, and about the new features of monthly statements.

Like everything else you buy, it pays to comparison shop for credit. For up-to-date interest rate reports on mortgages, auto loans, credit cards, home equity loans, and other banking products visit bankrate.com.

Learn how long it will take you to pay off your credit card balance.

If you or someone you know is in financial hot water, consider these options: realistic budgeting, credit counseling from a reputable organization, debt consolidation, or bankruptcy. Debt settlement is yet another option. How do you know which will work best for you? It depends on your level of debt, your level of discipline, and your prospects for the future.

Money Math: Lessons for Life is a four-lesson curriculum supplement for middle school math classes, teaching grade 7-9 math concepts using real-life examples from personal finance. The 86-page book is a teacher's guide with lesson plans, reproducible activity pages, and teaching tips. A teacher needs only one copy of Money Math: Lessons for Life to teach several classes of students.

MyMoney.gov is the U.S. government's website dedicated to teaching all Americans the basics about financial education. Whether you are buying a home, balancing your checkbook, or investing in your 401(k), the resources on MyMoney.gov can help you maximize your financial decisions.

Find government information in managing your finances, including credit, debt, home ownership, money management, retirement and estate planning and more.

What you need to know, or do if you have a complaint, about courtesy overdraft-protection, or bounce coverage plans.

The U.S. Department of Labor and Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards Inc. (CFP Board) want you to succeed in setting financial and retirement goals. Savings Fitness: A Guide to Your Money and Your Financial Future starts you on the way to setting goals and putting your retirement high on the list of personal priorities.

This publication explains the Federal Reserve's new credit card rules and related consumer protections. It tells consumers some of the key changes they can expect from their credit card company beginning on February 22, 2010.

New Federal Reserve overdraft rules take effect on July 1, 2010. This new online publication provides an explanation of how the rules will affect existing and new account holders.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) recognizes the importance of financial education, particularly for those with little or no banking experience. In 2001, the FDIC started a national financial education curriculum by launching Money Smart, a comprehensive financial education curriculum designed to help low- and moderate-income individuals outside the financial mainstream enhance their financial skills and create positive banking relationships.

The Money Smart Computer-Based Instruction (CBI) is a friendly and easy to use learning tool that teaches the 10 modules of the Money Smart curriculum through a computer. The CBI can complement formal classes or enable people to study independently at their own pace.

The Money Smart for Adults instructor-led curriculum consists of eleven training modules that cover basic financial topics. Topics include a description of deposit and credit services offered by financial institutions, choosing and maintaining a checking account, spending plans, the importance of saving, how to obtain and use credit effectively, and the basics of building or repairing credit.